Government reinforces checkpoints around Kurdish areas in Aleppo
ALEPPO, Syria (North Press) – The Syrian government forces removed military checkpoints in parts of the city of Aleppo, northwestern Syria, to reinforce those around Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafiyeh neighborhoods, which are run by a local administration, a military source in the government forces told North Press on Wednesday.
The source said that the security and military committee in Aleppo removed military checkpoints around neighborhoods such as Kafr Hamrah, Haritan, Qabr Inklizi, and others.
The source added that a new military checkpoint was set up on the road leading to the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood and another one near the al-Shuqaif industrial area, which is located in the northeast of the city center.
Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafiyeh are Kurdish-majority neighborhoods that house many IDPs from the city of Afrin and its countryside who were displaced after Turkish forces, along with their affiliated armed opposition factions, aka the Syrian National Army (SNA), occupied the region in March 2018 following a military operation dubbed ‘Olive Branch’.
The new checkpoints are jointly managed by the Military Security, General Intelligence Directorate, and the security forces of the Fourth Division. North Press previously reported that these government security formations collect taxes and royalties from residents and traders.
According to the source, the security checkpoints surrounding the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood have been informed to prevent the entry of medicine and to tighten sanctions on individuals who attempt to bring any into that area.